Third Man In

That's a nice anecdotal story. (It's Red Wings btw way, not Redwings. We didn't mess with our team name like you did yours.) But the reason there are so many Wings fans in buildings around the league, particularly in places like Florida, Carolina, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Anaheim, and San Jose, is because people have moved to those regions from Detroit and the rest of Michigan for jobs but have stayed loyal to the team. I know the bandwagon fan story is a popular one and is easy to latch onto for opposing fans, and yes there are a few bandwagoners around the league, but the story as a whole is just not true.

Hockey fans are always welcomed here, whatever their stripe. We've got fans of other teams on here that can attest to that. But imagine if Wings trolls flooded the Hawks' boards everytime we beat them. Attendance rankings: 2007 2 Red Wings 29 Blackhawks 2008 7 Red Wings 19 Blackhawks 2009 1 Blackhawks 3 Red Wings All wearing their brand new Toews and Kane sweaters, no doubt.

Let the trolls have their day. We've seen this song and dance from Sharks fans many times before--desperately trying to make a December or January game mean something--and we're seeing it from Hawks fans now. The Wings played poorly and deserved to lose, the Hawks played well enough and deserved to win. Nothing more, nothing less.

Shutouts against the Detroit Griffins count quadruple, apparently.

Believing doesn't make it true. He has 3. He's got 6 between last year and this... It seemed like Helm and Abdelkader were out there the whole game. The second PP unit was Helm, Eaves, Leino, Stuart, and Meech. I was staring at the screen thinking there had to be someone better they could throw out there. Then I remembered there wasn't.

List. Less. Everyone on the Wings not named Abdelkader played like it was a meaningless December game. I expected the Hawks to be the better team in their rink playing a depleted Wings team, and that the Wings would have to scrap to win. But there was zero effort from the Wings and two absolute back breakers by Ozzie at the end of the 2nd. Chicago had good defencive coverage, but the Wings were passing up shot after shot after shot. Uh, Wings, it's friggin' Huet in goal, not Luongo. But good on Chicago tonight. They deserved this one for sure.

Janik of course is going to be 30 in March and has played two full seasons and parts of three others before joining the Wings, so he shouldn't really be a year away. But your overall point is taken--the Wings are beginning to play some good, scrappy hockey while missing half their starting lineup. And god bless Kirk Maltby. That SOB made Ohlund's night miserable after that (clean) hit on Zetterberg.

Precisely. We can't expect people to control their actions when they're pissed off. Like smashing your goalie instead of the net with your stick. Completely unavoidable.

But this makes their stick looks so small compared to our massive wing.

Bettman says a lot of things. I realize he if anyone should be in a position to know. But considering the source, that doesn't lend this much credibility.

If only Bettman could have two Sidney Crosbies.

Edit: I think wins for the game played between the two ugliest jersies

We don't need to listen to this. It only comes from the Red Wings. It's not like it comes from the Detroit News or something. La la la two weeks! :noevil:

Hey, Howe was able to do in. Why not Fetisov? Good for him!

I worry that this is putting too much too soon on the shoulders of our kids. But Helm, Abdelkader, Howard, Meech, and yes Leino will have to really step up in a way they weren't expected to for this team to pull through. It could make them develop rapidly, or it could stunt their growth. Get well soon Danny (...and Franzen, Flip, Kronners, Lilja, Williams, and anyone else who is nursing injuries but have to play through them now.)

There was a shot that was neither right at the logo, in the pads, or wide of the net.

There's always the dreaded 'intent to blow' rule. But that was the right call there.

There's a lot less controversy if Bert just buries the friggin' puck the first time like he should have.

ooh ooh pick me pick me!

The Central is so terrible that even taking Grandy, Jackson, Polanco, and maybe Lyon, Rodney, and Laird out of the lineup still doesn't necessarily remove the Tigers from contention. I'm not saying it's likely the Tigers win the division, but it's not like anyone else has improved. I like Jackson a lot, but I can see that move making sense. The Tigers might be convinced his great first half was something he can't do with consistency and traded him when he was at the peak of his value. And Arizona absolutely got fleeced in this deal. But trading Granderson is like the Wings trading Draper 10 years ago. Both were very good players, but their value extends well beyond the game to the fans and the community and doesn't translate in a trade.

Seems like a nice kid. The Yankees talk of him like the Tigers used to talk of Cameron Maybin. Look at the bright side--if he turns out, maybe the Tigers will ship him back to the Yankees once he hits his prime.

There's a good analysis here. I agree that things could turn out well for the Tigers if Scherzer and Austin Jackson pan out (the Yankees obviously didn't think the latter would) and the Tigers can resign Verlander in a couple years (a bigger if after this trade). I wish they could have held out one more year, because several of the bad contracts are up after 2010 (Robinson, Willis, and Bonderman--although Bondo is more unlucky than bad). But Granderson is still the type of player that you don't trade. He's a star in Detroit and a big part of the community. He'll be just another cog in New York. After trading Maybin and Jurrjens, I'm not sure the fans will forgive this one.

f*** you Dave Dombrowski. This trade breaks my heart. It makes it hard to root for a team that jerks around its fans like this. Granderson was an ambassador for the league, not just a face of the team. This after screwing over Inge, dealing Jurrjens after a phenomenal start to his career, and trading Maybin and Miller after promising them to us for years as the future of the team. You think this move makes it easier to sign Verlander? We've become a friggin' farm club for the Yankees. Verlander will probably sign there too now.

Oh c'mon. It's just getting good.

It's Canada now, but it will be England in the future. They've been playing underwater hockey for over 50 years. After global warming makes the frozen variety unfeasible, they'll own the sport.